Oscar Results.

Well, this is the worst I have done in awhile. 16/24

Oscars.

My favorite time of year has finally come: Oscars. Yet this year is kindof a snoozefest. No real surprises. That being said, there are always a few upsets. So here are my completely overthought, overobsessed predictions.

Best Picture: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, Milk, The Reader, Slumdog Millionaire



Duh, Slumdog. Oscar has a boner for it, for some odd reason. However, if an upset were to come here, it would not be the most nominated film, Benjy Button, but instead Milk. Why? Older members will vote for Benjy, younger voters opt for Slumdog. If the two cancel each other out, Milk slips into the top spot. Also, Brokeback was robbed a few years ago in favor of the dreadful Crash, which Oscar has still not recovered from. Milk will get some votes, but I wouldn't bet a dime on it winning.

Best Director: Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire), Stephen Daldry (The Reader), David Fincher (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Ron Howard (Frost/Nixon), Gus Van Sant (Milk)



Danny Boyle. He's one every other award and he has a good body of work. Upsets? None likely. But I would say David Fincher for Benjy. He's well known and it was an ambitious film. But I don't think it is his year.

Best Actor: Richard Jenkins (The Visitor), Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon), Sean Penn (Milk), Brad Pitt (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler)



It all comes down to Sean and Mickey. Langella is terrific, but Frost just doesn't have enough momentum. My guess is Mickey Rourke. Sean Penn never really seems to care about the Oscars and he already has one. The voters loved Milk, but Rourke offers one of those Oscar moments that will be remembered forever. Plus he gives great acceptance speeches.

Best Actress: Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married), Angelina Jolie (Changeling); Melissa Leo (Frozen River), Meryl Streep (Doubt), Kate Winslet (The Reader)



Kate Winslet. They made it impossible for her to lose by only nominating her for one film this year. It's in the bag.

Best Supporting Actor: Josh Brolin (Milk), Robert Downey, Jr. (Tropic Thunder), Philip Seymour Hoffman (Doubt), Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight), Michael Shannon (Revolutionary Road)



Heath Ledger. No explanation needed.

Best Supporting Actress: Amy Adams (Doubt), Penélope Cruz (Vicky Cristina Barcelona), Viola Davis (Doubt), Taraji P. Henson (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Marisa Tomei (The Wrestler)



This is the only real toss-up. Everyone says Cruz, but I am going to take a risk and call Viola Davis. She had the real "breakout" performance this year. Upstaging Meryl Streep is a tough feat, especially in only 8 minutes of screen time. But watch out for Henson, she could be Benjys only opportunity at taking a top award, and voters really like her.

Best Original Screenplay: WALL-E, Happy-Go-Lucky, Frozen River, In Bruges, Milk




Milk. WALL-E comes closest to an upset, but with very little written dialogue and no Best Pic nod, it's a long shot.

Best Adapted Screenplay: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, The Reader, Slumdog Millionaire, Doubt



Slumdog. It's a lock.

Best Animated Feature: Bolt, Kung Fu Panda, WALL-E
WALL-E. Locked.

Best Foreign Language Film: Revanche (Austria), The Class (France), The Baader Meinhof Complex (Germany), Departures (Japan), Waltz With Bashir (Israel)
Waltz With Bashir has the upper hand with a true story told in animation. It won the Golden Globe and some actual, live human beings have seen it. But don't rule out The Class, which has actually gotten better overall reviews.

Best Animated Short: La Maison En Petits Cubes, Lavatory - Lovestory, Oktapodi, Presto, This Way Up
I have no idea. And I have seen them all. Presto has the most clout, being a Pixar film, but Pixar is already going to win this year with WALL-E. If I had to vote, I'd go for La Maison, but something tells me This Way Up is going to win.

Best Art Direction: Changeling, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, The Duchess, Revolutionary Road
Ben Button. No real competition here.

Best Cinematography: Changeling, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, The Reader, Slumdog Millionaire
Slumdog.

Best Costume Design: Australia, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Duchess, Milk, Revolutionary Road
The Duchess. Period films always win. Plus Australia was apparently god-awful.

Best Documentary Feature: Nerakhoon, Encounters at the End of the World, The Garden, Man on Wire, Trouble the Water
Man on Wire is the only one I have seen, and it was great. The only real talk of an upset is Trouble the Water, based on victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Best Documentary Short: The Conscience of Nhem En, The Final Inch, Smile Pinki, The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306
The Conscience of Nhem En's director has three previous nods and no wins, making it a favorite. But that's all I really know about any of these films.

Best Film Editing: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, Frost/Nixon, Milk, Slumdog Millionaire
I always judge these categories by thinking "what story couldn't be told if it had no editor and was shot scene-for-scene?" Slumdog.

Best Makeup: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight; Hellboy II: The Golden Army
"What story couldn't be told if it had no makeup?" Button.

Best Sound Editing: The Dark Knight, Iron Man, Slumdog Millionaire, WALL-E, Wanted
"What story couldn't be told if it had no expressive sounds?" WALL-E.

Best Sound Mixing: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, Slumdog Millionaire, WALL-E, Wanted
No one really even knows what this means, but my guess is that The Dark Knight and all of those action scenes have something to do with something.

Best Visual Effects: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, Iron Man
Button is going to win this, with 80 years of time to cover.

Best Live Action Short: On the Line, Manon On the Asphalt, New Boy, The Pig, Toyland
Toyland? It's about the Holocaust, so that's my guess.

Best Original Score: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Defiance, Milk, Slumdog Millionaire, WALL-E
Slumdog.

Best Original Song: “Down To Earth” (WALL-E), “Jai Ho” (Slumdog Millionaire), “O Saya” (Slumdog Millionaire)
No one really knows. My thought is that Jai Ho will win, but I'm gonna go out on a limb and say Down to Earth, since Slumdog is going to win so much other crap. Plus no one is even reading this anymore.

So those are my bets. Anyone care to challenge me? A dollar per category you disagree on?

Blog.

I'm gonna start blogging again, I swear.

Tomorrow.

Politics.

There is a reason I have not blogged in over three weeks.

Yup, Politics.

For some strange reason, I have thrown myself into the presidential race lately. Eating, sleeping and breathing electoral votes, conventions, teenage pregnancies and farm animal cosmetics. I listen to an average of five hours a day of political commentary via Podcast. Usually BBC and NPR. Then I rush home and watch CNN until I go to bed.

I'm not going to flood my blog with my political opinions. There are enough out there. Plus I'm sure no one cares.

But I will say this. Please register to vote. And then actually do it. This race will be one of the most historic and groundbreaking elections in the history of this country and we should be thrilled to be a part of it.

But the biggest opportunity is to take the votes from old people. Whether Democrat or Republican, they are the ones that vote. Not us, the people who the race will affect most. We can potentially redraw the map. We should seize that opportunity.

On a side note, my next blog will be an opportunity to vote on how to make me "cool".

Rock.

I haven't thought about it for awhile, and I am sure many of you will be surprised, but I used to listen to good music.

It's true. I wasn't always a Britney/Madonna/Abba fanatic. In my younger days, I loved Lou Reed and Iggy Pop...I listened to Nirvana (pre Nevermind) and electric Dylan, Velvet Underground and Patti Smith. There were days when I could even stomach some earlier Zepplin...

But as the gay caught up with me, I started listening to crappier music. It's fun and stupid and you can listen to it virtually anywhere. Because it's so sterile, it's always the right occasion.

But tonight, I went to a show where my former roommate (circa 1999), his brother, a guy I used to bartend with, and two other people that I did not know played a show in Brooklyn right around the corner from me. I figured I would waltz in and surprise them...They would never expect to see me at a rock show. And surprise them, I did.

But something happened there last night. I mainly went to be supportive...I didn't really think they would be any good. But they were, in fact, pretty good. The music was well-composed. The sound and acoustics were terrific. The band had an idea, a concept. A reason to be there. They were a little off-key, but so what? While I stood in the balcony watching them, pouring out their heart and souls, I felt something I hadn't felt in a long time. It was like that first time I saw Courtney moan "You look good in my dress." or Patti screaming "I have not sold myself to God."

No, no. Rock is not dead, I said to myself.

I had just forgotten it.

And for a brief moment, I was proud to be a part of it.

What's my brand?

Jillian and I have been talking alot about making our second books lately, and her brand is better than mine. I am trying to figure out what mine is and how to portray it in paper-fashion. Obviously, I am aware that my whole persona is over-the-top, but what is my key visual?

Is it this?



Or this?



Or maybe this?



I have written a new spot for myself that will take a good month to shoot, and I have a couple new promotional pieces that I have been thinking about. But what one thing can visually tie this whole thing together?

Can I get some thoughts?

Ass.

I always thought at sometime in my life I would reach the point where I stopped being capable of making a complete and total ass of myself.

I have not reached that point yet.